despotism

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

However, the party said it was proud that Tchiroma Bakary could find "safe sanctuary" in The Gambia, adding that it was fully aware of how "despotism operates and how dissenters are treated".

From BBC • Nov. 24, 2025

Their devotion to Slowick meanwhile, hovers between that of a proletarian army in revolt against its oppressors and the legions of the undead commanded by figures of aristocratic despotism such as Dracula.

From Salon • Dec. 17, 2022

Plagues, droughts, floods, toxic air and water, wars, massacres, famines, earthquakes, heat waves, wildfires, recessions, dust storms, despotism — slow-motion nightmares are crashing into fast-moving catastrophes, each one amplifying the next.

From New York Times • Nov. 10, 2022

It’s akin to the theory that the best form of government is benevolent despotism, which emerged during the Enlightenment of the 18th century.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 3, 2022

Prison administration couldn’t help being a despotism, but it could be an enlightened one.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover